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== Characteristics ==
== Characteristics ==
It has been assumed that the Bornean tiger might have been rather small in size, similar to the [[Sumatran tiger]].<ref name=Kitchener1999>{{cite book |editor1=Seidensticker, J. |editor2=Jackson, P. |editor3=Christie, S. |title=Riding the Tiger: Tiger Conservation in Human-Dominated Landscapes |author=Kitchener, A. C. |chapter=Tiger distribution, phenotypic variation and conservation issues |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |pages=19–39 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dbQ8AAAAIAAJ |year=1999 |isbn=0521648351}}</ref> According to the native people, it is bigger than a [[Bornean clouded leopard]], and largely brown in colour with faint stripes.<ref name="Meijaard1999"/>
It has been assumed that the Bornean tiger might have been rather small in size, similar to the [[Sumatran tiger]].<ref name=Kitchener1999>{{cite book |editor1=Seidensticker, J. |editor2=Jackson, P. |editor3=Christie, S. |title=Riding the Tiger: Tiger Conservation in Human-Dominated Landscapes |author=Kitchener, A. C. |chapter=Tiger distribution, phenotypic variation and conservation issues |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |pages=19–39 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dbQ8AAAAIAAJ |year=1999 |isbn=0521648351}}</ref> According to the native people, it is bigger than a [[Bornean clouded leopard]], and largely brown in colour with faint stripes.<ref name="Meijaard1999"/> The second specimen(found in 2019) was a partial mandible that was around 22,000 years old. This was during a Glacial period, so Borneo was part of Sundaland. Size estimates of this tiger suggest that weighed around 470 kg.


In [[Malaysia]]'s [[Sarawak]], about 750,000 animal bone fragments were excavated in [[Niah National Park]] between 1954 and 1966. A [[metacarpal bone]] fragment measuring more than {{convert|5|cm|abbr=on}} was identified as being of a young tiger.<ref name="PiperRabett2007">{{cite journal |author1=Piper, P. J. |author2=R. J. Rabett, Earl of Cranbrook |title=Confirmation of the presence of the tiger ''Panthera tigris'' (L.) in Late Pleistocene and Holocene Borneo |journal=Malayan Nature Journal |year=2007 |volume=59 |issue=3 |pages=259–267 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284506355 |access-date=2018-05-29}}</ref> Two [[fossil]] bone fragments excavated at the [[Ille Cave]] on the [[Palawan (island)|island of Palawan]] in the [[Philippines]] were identified as being of a tiger. One fragment is a full basal [[phalanx bone]] of the second digit of the left [[manus (anatomy)|manus]] measuring {{convert|46.44|mm|in|abbr=on}}; the other is the distal portion of a subterminal phalanx of the same digit and manus measuring {{convert|16.04|mm|in|abbr=on}}. These lengths are similar to those of living tigers from the [[Malay Peninsula]] and [[India]].<ref name="Piper_al2008">{{cite journal |last1=Piper |first1=P. J. |last2=Ochoa |first2=J. |last3=Lewis |first3=H. |last4=Paz |first4=V. |last5=Ronquillo |first5=W. P. |title=The first evidence for the past presence of the tiger ''Panthera tigris'' (L.) on the island of Palawan, Philippines: extinction in an island population |journal=Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology |year=2008 |volume=264 |issue=1–2 |pages=123–127 |doi=10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.04.003 |bibcode=2008PPP...264..123P}}</ref>
In [[Malaysia]]'s [[Sarawak]], about 750,000 animal bone fragments were excavated in [[Niah National Park]] between 1954 and 1966. A [[metacarpal bone]] fragment measuring more than {{convert|5|cm|abbr=on}} was identified as being of a young tiger.<ref name="PiperRabett2007">{{cite journal |author1=Piper, P. J. |author2=R. J. Rabett, Earl of Cranbrook |title=Confirmation of the presence of the tiger ''Panthera tigris'' (L.) in Late Pleistocene and Holocene Borneo |journal=Malayan Nature Journal |year=2007 |volume=59 |issue=3 |pages=259–267 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284506355 |access-date=2018-05-29}}</ref> Two [[fossil]] bone fragments excavated at the [[Ille Cave]] on the [[Palawan (island)|island of Palawan]] in the [[Philippines]] were identified as being of a tiger. One fragment is a full basal [[phalanx bone]] of the second digit of the left [[manus (anatomy)|manus]] measuring {{convert|46.44|mm|in|abbr=on}}; the other is the distal portion of a subterminal phalanx of the same digit and manus measuring {{convert|16.04|mm|in|abbr=on}}. These lengths are similar to those of living tigers from the [[Malay Peninsula]] and [[India]].<ref name="Piper_al2008">{{cite journal |last1=Piper |first1=P. J. |last2=Ochoa |first2=J. |last3=Lewis |first3=H. |last4=Paz |first4=V. |last5=Ronquillo |first5=W. P. |title=The first evidence for the past presence of the tiger ''Panthera tigris'' (L.) on the island of Palawan, Philippines: extinction in an island population |journal=Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology |year=2008 |volume=264 |issue=1–2 |pages=123–127 |doi=10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.04.003 |bibcode=2008PPP...264..123P}}</ref>

Revision as of 15:04, 19 December 2022

Bornean tiger
Painting of a tiger at a Buddhist temple in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia
Painting of a tiger at a Buddhist temple in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia
Scientific classificationEdit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Feliformia
Family: Felidae
Subfamily: Pantherinae
Genus: Panthera
Species: P. tigris
Population: Bornean tiger
Map of Borneo and surrounding islands, including Palawan
Map of Borneo and surrounding islands, including Palawan

The Bornean tiger or Borneo tiger is possibly an extinct tiger population that lived on the island of Borneo in prehistoric times.[1][2] A live Bornean tiger has not been conclusively recorded, but the indigenous Dayak people believe in its existence, and occasionally report sightings.[3][4]

Characteristics

It has been assumed that the Bornean tiger might have been rather small in size, similar to the Sumatran tiger.[5] According to the native people, it is bigger than a Bornean clouded leopard, and largely brown in colour with faint stripes.[3] The second specimen(found in 2019) was a partial mandible that was around 22,000 years old. This was during a Glacial period, so Borneo was part of Sundaland. Size estimates of this tiger suggest that weighed around 470 kg.

In Malaysia's Sarawak, about 750,000 animal bone fragments were excavated in Niah National Park between 1954 and 1966. A metacarpal bone fragment measuring more than 5 cm (2.0 in) was identified as being of a young tiger.[6] Two fossil bone fragments excavated at the Ille Cave on the island of Palawan in the Philippines were identified as being of a tiger. One fragment is a full basal phalanx bone of the second digit of the left manus measuring 46.44 mm (1.828 in); the other is the distal portion of a subterminal phalanx of the same digit and manus measuring 16.04 mm (0.631 in). These lengths are similar to those of living tigers from the Malay Peninsula and India.[7]

Behaviour and ecology

The Borneo tiger is thought to have preyed on ungulate species such as the Bornean bearded pig, the Bornean yellow muntjac and the sambar deer. According to the local Dayak, the tiger did not climb trees.[3]

Archaeological records

Entrance of the Great Cave of Niah in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo
The Balabac Strait between Borneo and Palawan, on the Malaysia–Philippines border between Malaysia and the Philippines
A tropical rainforest in Palawan, the Philippines

Archaeological excavations produced an upper canine tooth, a navicular and a metacarpal bone that were identified as being of a tiger. It has therefore been suggested that the tiger was present in Borneo during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene.[6] A bone fragment was also found in the Philippine island of Palawan. Archaeologists considered it unlikely that these fragments were traded between different regions during the Pleistocene.[7]

Borneo might have been connected to Palawan during the penultimate and previous glacial periods, judging from the molecular phylogeny of murids in the area.[8] Tiger parts were commonly used as amulets in South and Southeast Asia, so it is possible that the tiger parts found in Palawan were imported from elsewhere.[8][9]

It is also possible that the tiger crossed the Balabac Strait in the Middle Pleistocene about 420,000–620,000 years ago, when the distance between Borneo and Palawan was lower than today.[7] During this period, the relative sea level decreased to about −130 m (−430 ft) due to the expansion of ice sheets.[10][11][12] To date, no evidence exists for the tiger surviving in Palawan beyond 12,000 years ago.[7]

Alleged records

In 1975, Douchan Gersi claimed to have seen a tiger in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. He took two photographs of the animal.[13] These photos depict a tiger, but the authenticity of the photographs was doubted,[1] and its origin remains unclear.[3] It might have been an escaped captive one.[13] In 1995, native people in Central Kalimantan claimed to have heard a tiger roar, and that they were able to distinguish between a tiger's roar and vocalisations of other animals.[3]

In culture

Relief on a Chinese Buddhist temple at Kuching, Sarawak
Chinese-style relief of a warrior riding a tiger in Semenggoh Nature Reserve, Sarawak

Natives of Borneo keep the memory of the tiger alive in their culture by treating its body parts as heirlooms; therefore, it has been suggested that the Bornean tiger existed longer than prehistoric times.[7] Tiger claws were used as protective amulets among the Kenyah, Ngaju and Iban peoples either as part of important ceremonies or adorned by people of prominent status; vocabulary referring to the animal in presence but also in avoidance speech is also attested, such as aso 'dog' or buang / bohang 'bear' as a replacement in Kayanic languages.[14]

Tiger motifs are also seen visualised in traditional or ceremonial and modern carvings as well as weaved fabrics such as mats and clothing, such as the Iban pua kumbu).[14]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Medway, L. (1977). "The Niah Excavations and an Assessment of the Impact of Early Man on Mammals in Borneo" (PDF). Asian Perspectives. 20 (1): 51–69.
  2. ^ Medway, L. (1977). Mammals of Borneo: field keys and an annotated checklist. Vol. 7. Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society.
  3. ^ a b c d e Meijaard, E. (1999). "The Bornean Tiger; Speculation on its existence". Cat News (30): 12–15.
  4. ^ Kitchener, A.C. & Yamaguchi, N. (2010). "What is a tiger? Biogeography, Morphology, and Taxonomy". In Tilson, R. & Nyhus, P.J. (eds.). Tigers of the world: The Science, Politics and Conservation of Panthera tigris. Cambridge: Academic Press. pp. 59–81. ISBN 978-0-8155-1570-8.
  5. ^ Kitchener, A. C. (1999). "Tiger distribution, phenotypic variation and conservation issues". In Seidensticker, J.; Jackson, P.; Christie, S. (eds.). Riding the Tiger: Tiger Conservation in Human-Dominated Landscapes. Cambridge University Press. pp. 19–39. ISBN 0521648351.
  6. ^ a b Piper, P. J.; R. J. Rabett, Earl of Cranbrook (2007). "Confirmation of the presence of the tiger Panthera tigris (L.) in Late Pleistocene and Holocene Borneo". Malayan Nature Journal. 59 (3): 259–267. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  7. ^ a b c d e Piper, P. J.; Ochoa, J.; Lewis, H.; Paz, V.; Ronquillo, W. P. (2008). "The first evidence for the past presence of the tiger Panthera tigris (L.) on the island of Palawan, Philippines: extinction in an island population". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 264 (1–2): 123–127. Bibcode:2008PPP...264..123P. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.04.003.
  8. ^ a b Van der Geer, A.; Lyras, G.; De Vos, J.; Dermitzakis, M. (2011). "15 (The Philippines); 26 (Carnivores)". Evolution of Island Mammals: Adaptation and Extinction of Placental Mammals on Islands. John Wiley & Sons. pp. 220–347. ISBN 9781444391282.
  9. ^ Ochoa, J.; Piper, P. J. (2017). "Tiger". In Monks, G. (ed.). Climate Change and Human Responses: A Zooarchaeological Perspective. Springer Publishing. pp. 79–80. ISBN 978-9-4024-1106-5.
  10. ^ Rohling, E. G.; Fenton, M.; Jorissen, F. G.; Bertrand, P.; Ganssen, G.; Caulet, J. P. (1998). "Magnitudes of sea-level lowstands of the past 500,000 years". Nature. 394 (6689): 162–165. Bibcode:1998Natur.394..162R. doi:10.1038/28134. S2CID 4421184.
  11. ^ Waelbroeck, C.; Labeyrie, L.; Michel, E.; Duplessy, J. C.; McManus, J. F.; Lambeck, K.; Balbon, E.; Labracherie, M. (2002). "Sea-level and deep water temperature changes derived from benthic foraminifera isotopic records". Quaternary Science Reviews. 21 (1): 295–305. Bibcode:2002QSRv...21..295W. doi:10.1016/S0277-3791(01)00101-9.
  12. ^ Bintanja, R.; Van de Wal, R.S.W.; Oerlemans, J. (2006). "Modelled atmospheric temperatures and global sea levels over the past million years". Nature. 437 (7055): 125–128. Bibcode:2005Natur.437..125B. doi:10.1038/nature03975. PMID 16136140. S2CID 4347450.
  13. ^ a b Gersi, D. (1975). Dans la jungle de Bornéo (in French). Paris: Éditions G. P.
  14. ^ a b Sellato, B. (2019). The Other Tiger: History, Beliefs, and Rituals in Borneo. Temasek Working Paper No. 1. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies / Yusof Ishak Institute, Temasek History Research Center.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bornean_tiger&oldid=1128325069"